Reborn in Japan as a Chef God
Chapter 362 - 361: The Curtain Falls

Chapter 362: Chapter 361: The Curtain Falls

"Glowing..."

His lips parted, and he whispered in a voice he could hear himself; when the spoon gently pierced into the porridge, it seemed to burst something, breaking the equilibrium—the faintly swirling light within the porridge vanished without a trace.

He scooped up a spoonful of condensed milk porridge and ate it, and suddenly, the whole place fell into dead silence.

The upper half of the Far Moon General’s garments slid off automatically.

He abandoned the spoon altogether, tilted his head back, his neck veins bulging, and took the bowl to his lips, his Adam’s apple moving up and down in a gulping motion, apparently indifferent to the heat and burn of the porridge, gulping it down!

Threads of steam rose from Tiqie Xianzuowen’s bronze skin.

Moreover, he began to sweat all over his body, and in the blink of an eye, his body was covered in beads of sweat, his already imposing and robust figure now filled with even more masculinity.

It seemed like an illusion, but as the audience watched the Far Moon General’s face on the screen, while he gulped down the porridge, the aged, wrinkled face began to exude a semblance of youthful vitality.

He was becoming younger...

Becoming younger!

Countless people were doing the same thing, rubbing their eyes hard, almost as if they were experiencing a hallucination.

"Good—"

In just a moment, Tiqie Xianzuowen set aside the emptied porcelain bowl.

Without another word, he handed the bowl to a trembling female staff member nearby, while pulling on his clothes without bothering to wipe away the sweat, he strolled back to his guest seat.

All ten thousand pairs of eyes in the venue followed his movements.

"Gululu~"

Once Tiqie Xianzuowen sat down in his seat, the audience shifted their gaze back to the pot on the pushcart, swallowing hard.

A dish that could earn high praise from the Far Moon General must be exceptional.

Seeing this, Xia Yu directly stepped off the stage and whispered a few words to Chiyoda Aichi at the side. Chiyoda Aichi’s face lit up with surprise, and she looked up, scanned the hall, took a breath, and said, "I have some good news for everyone!"

"There’s still a lot of the medicinal porridge left in the clay pot. Chef Xia says that he will draw 30 lucky audience members to come down and taste his cooking. IGO will provide the bowls and spoons for the meal..."

No sooner had her voice fallen than the venue erupted with exclamations like thunder.

"I want to eat!"

"Choose me!"

"Chef Xia, look over here..."

The ten-thousand-person hall instantly became as chaotic as a marketplace, and Chiyoda Aichi was startled by the tidal wave of shouts.

"Give me—"

Xia Yu took over Chiyoda Aichi’s announcement, coughing slightly and saying, "I’m very sorry, everyone. Of these 30 places, 10 will be reserved for the general seating audience, and the remaining 20 will be divided equally between the Far Moon Team and the guests."

At the judging seat, several staff members quickly went on stage to consult Shinohara Shigetaro.

"Then we’ll draw lots in public!"

This wasn’t an unprecedented situation. Shinohara Shigetaro waved his hand, and soon after, the big screen hanging above the venue displayed the seating arrangement and started the lottery process.

Ten minutes later, 30 lucky ones had gathered near the judging platform.

Queuing for porridge.

Xia Yu was the one serving the porridge, filling up big bowls for all 30 people. After everyone was served, only the bottom of the pot remained, barely enough for two or three more bowls.

Thus, his gaze turned towards the guest seats.

Yuchuan Ayaka was not among the ten lucky ones from the guest seats.

He turned his head to say a few words to Chiyoda Aichi, who then announced over the microphone, "Miss Yuchuan, Chef Xia invites you to come down for porridge!"

Nearly all the professional chefs in the guest seats cast envious glances at her.

"I really want to try that porridge!"

"Yes, yes!"

As the voices of the chefs sitting next to her reached her ears, Yuchuan Ayaka’s eyelashes trembled, she kept her gaze down and ignored Chiyoda Aichi’s call, slightly bowing her head and remaining seated.

Yuchuan Ayaka felt a twinge of regret.

She shouldn’t have come to the venue to observe this Summer Evaluation.

At this moment, the atmosphere in the venue and the occasional odd glances from the people around her seemed to mock her ignorance, her foolishness.

Although the three judges had not given their final appraisal, the result was already clear.

Chef Xia’s invitation to eat porridge only added to Yuchuan Ayaka’s feeling of discomfort, as if she had swallowed a fly.

"Delicious!"

In the camera’s view, the ten lucky ones from the general seating—obviously wealthy or noble from their clothes and demeanor—couldn’t help but cry when they took their first spoonful of the hot porridge; it was so delicious it brought them to tears!

Roland Chapele was one of the ten lucky members from the Far Moon Team.

After swallowing a spoonful.

His body felt warm and cozy, the heat spreading from his mouth to every corner of his limbs and body.

And a warm current stored itself in his organs.

As if he had returned to heaven, arrived at the Pure Land of Bliss, Roland Chapele’s wrinkled face was visibly becoming younger at a rate noticeable to the naked eye; he was standing before a tranquil holy spring, looking down at his reflection in the water.

Involuntarily touching the now-smooth skin on his face, Roland Chapele’s lips moved as he was softly saying something, reminiscing about his youth when he was eighteen.

In the camera’s lens, life in all its forms.

Some cried, some had faces filled with happiness, and some were simply immersed in the world of culinary wizardry, unwilling to snap back to reality long after the porridge was gone.

"Magic! Culinary magic!"

Finally, the thirty tasters all gazed intently at the young chef standing by the clay pot.

"Chef Xia!"

One well-dressed, portly middle-aged man, clearly a successful individual, trembled at the lips, his face flush with excitement, hurriedly stepped in front of Xia Yu, handing over a gold-foil business card.

"Please accept my humble card!" he said while wiping his sweat with a handkerchief, sneaking glances at the pot on the cart, and upon seeing there was still some left in the pot, he swallowed hard and bowed deeply with difficulty, "Please, please serve me another bowl! I’ll pay a million yen, no, ten million..."

He didn’t finish speaking when he was interrupted by a low sneer.

"How much is ten million yen?"

Takai Masashi came from behind; he was the one drawn.

"Eh... Mr. Takai!" The middle-aged man could only step down reluctantly.

Aside from the title of Super Chef, Takai Masashi was also the helmsman of the Takai Group, a giant gastronomy corporation with power to summon the wind and call the rain in the business world.

"Thank you for the hospitality!"

Takai Masashi bowed to Xia Yu painstakingly.

"By the way, if I want to eat this medicated porridge again, can I go directly to Xia’s Restaurant?" he asked a question that concerned all the spectators.

"You can’t go directly, you need to make a reservation," Xia Yu shook his head, "but our reservations at Xia Restaurant, both the main and branch locations, are booked for a month in advance!"

He frowned slightly in distress.

Takai Masashi merely smiled composedly and didn’t say more as he stepped back.

Some matters were inconvenient to discuss in public.

Xia Restaurant has a special hospitality system, of course, but that also requires meeting the conditions for such hospitality. For example, visiting during off hours from normal business times.

Thirty people successively left the stage.

But the assessment was not over yet.

"Announce the results—" Xia Yu looked up at the judges’ bench.

Shinohara Shigetaro nodded.

"All three of us judges unanimously gave Chef Xia an excellent evaluation!"

"Structure! He incorporated two Fantasy Ingredients, ’Jile Rice’ and ’Almond Cabbage Roll,’ into a reasonable structure!"

"He used flame control techniques and pastry rotation skills to completely tame ’Jile Rice,’ turning this brand-new Fantasy Ingredient into a puzzle piece in constructing his culinary world!"

"That is the summary of our evaluation!"

Following his words, cheers echoed through the sky above Tokyo.

Excellent!

Not just satisfactory, nor merely good!

The highest evaluation!

The Far Moon Team, students and teachers alike, stood up uniformly and offered the most enthusiastic applause.

"Ohhhhhhhhhhhh!!"

Yoshino Yuuki clapped and screamed madly.

Tanaka Hikari, lost in the moment, did not realize her fair hands were getting red and swollen from clapping.

The teachers and professors were relatively restrained, but from their beaming smiles, it was evident that they were gratified and excited, and felt honored by the youngest Super Chef in Far Moon’s and Neon’s history.

"Indeed, this kid really is a monster!"

Takai Masashi had returned to the guest seats, and Hase Ichiro, while offering applause, let out a helpless and emotional sigh.

The head of the Takai Group had a complicated look.

He finally let go of the last bit of hope he had held on to for recruiting Xia Yu.

Such an exceptional young chef would not be within the reach of the Takai Group. IGO, the Culinary Federation, and many other giants would be extending olive branches, not to mention the Tiqie Family...

Yuchuan Ayaka, forgotten in a corner, had quietly slipped away.

Thump, thump, thump...

In the empty corridor leading to the outside, Yuchuan Ayaka hastened her steps, head bowed, as the roaring applause behind her sounded so grating in her ears, as if thousands were standing behind her, pointing and commenting.

"...Are you really going to leave like this?"

A voice suddenly stopped her.

Her footsteps halted abruptly, and Yuchuan Ayaka looked up to see the Main General of the IGO’s Neon Department, dressed in a white shirt and brown slim-fit trousers, with silver high heels on her feet, leaning lightly against the corridor wall, her arms folded as she scrutinized her.

"Main General Liangzi!"

She forced a smile and said, "I have to leave because I have other things to do."

Liangzi Lina didn’t dwell on her reasons for leaving and nodded gently, "Then, do you still intend to honor the words you said during the Super Chef exam a month ago?"

Yuchuan Ayaka knew well what she meant to honor.

"Yes!"

Her hands at her side clenched quietly, her voice lowered, "There is no turning back when the bow is drawn! I await his challenge!"

"Challenge?"

Liangzi Lina’s voice held a playful tone, "As of now, you both seem to be new Super Chefs, with equal status. There’s no talk of anyone challenging anyone else. It will be a most fair culinary battle!"

Anger!

Hearing the Main General say that, Yuchuan Ayaka’s fists tightened even more, "I will prove it!!"

With that, she hurried away.

Back at the event.

The summer assessment was not yet over, and when Chiyoda Aichi called the last person’s name for the examination, the audience finally remembered Ujou Mamie, who had been forgotten for a long time.

"I’ll settle the score with you after it’s over!"

Ujou Mamie glared at Xia Yu with malice, her heart full of pent-up frustration, but it wasn’t the right moment to erupt.

She took the stage, though the cheers were not as loud as they had been earlier.

"My dish, a specially made spicy black curry rice, will not disappoint you!"

With a bang, she placed the plate on the table.

Ujou Mamie looked straight at the three judges, her gaze unwavering!

A true chef, never admits defeat.